Less Sweet Icing

Baking By Deanna78 Updated 5 Aug 2010 , 12:49pm by Deanna78

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Deanna78 Posted 22 Jul 2010 , 3:20pm
post #1 of 25

My niece wants me to make her a chocolate cake with quoted as her words "vanilla fluffy creamy frosting not the sweet stuff", so I am new to this and only have used butter cream and that is sweet, any suggestions on what I can use?

24 replies
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auntbeesbaking Posted 22 Jul 2010 , 3:29pm
post #2 of 25

Hi. I wanted to let you know that BETTERCREME is an option by Rich's. It's fluffy and not sickingly sweet and it's the alternative I use for those who don't want buttercream. If you have a cake store near you they may carry it or GFS (Gordon's Food Service) carries it also.

I also invite you to try my buttercream recipe under recipes. It's called Extra Special Buttercream and has gotten great reviews, and is not sickingly sweet either.

Good Luck!

auntbeesbaking

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ddaigle Posted 22 Jul 2010 , 3:31pm
post #3 of 25

Salt cuts sweet. If you use butter in your butter cream...use the salted butter. If you use unsalted butter, make sure you add salt to your recipe.

I made a french vanilla butter cream and found it to be not sweet at all. I used the butter cream dream recipe here on cc and subbed french vanilla liquid coffee creamer for my liquid and used french vanilla extract. It was not sweet at all..I had a spoon and was eating it like cereal! HTH

Deb

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lisamenz Posted 22 Jul 2010 , 3:48pm
post #4 of 25

I add some extra clear flavoring to my buttercreams to help cut the sweetness. I like to add , vanilla, almond, butter all in one batch. Play with your batches and see what works for you. Don't use to much Almond, just about a Tablespoon for a big batch. It will be over powering. Butter flavoring is so good and takes away from the sweetness. Happy Cake Decorating

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ddaigle Posted 22 Jul 2010 , 3:58pm
post #5 of 25

Just thought of another....whipped chocolate ganache (to me) isn't as sweet as chocolate buttercream.

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floral1210 Posted 22 Jul 2010 , 4:03pm
post #6 of 25

Auntbeesbaking...your Extra Special Buttercream recipe is totally awesome! It has a wonderful consistency, and really isn't very sweet. I add more cream to cut the sugar a bit if I need to!

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Dizzymaiden Posted 22 Jul 2010 , 4:03pm
post #7 of 25
Quote:
Originally Posted by auntbeesbaking

..I also invite you to try my buttercream recipe under recipes. It's called Extra Special Buttercream and has gotten great reviews, and is not sickingly sweet either.Good Luck!auntbeesbaking




I am going to try your ESB this weekend. I am not sure about BETTERCREME because it is commercial, but it does get good reviews.

Thanks!

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Deanna78 Posted 22 Jul 2010 , 5:00pm
post #8 of 25

Thank you everyone!! Auntbeesbaking, I tried searching for your recipe for Extra Special Buttercream but was unable to find it. I found one ut it wasn't posted by you. Any other way to get the recipe?

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auntbeesbaking Posted 23 Jul 2010 , 12:01am
post #10 of 25
Quote:
Originally Posted by floral1210

Auntbeesbaking...your Extra Special Buttercream recipe is totally awesome! It has a wonderful consistency, and really isn't very sweet. I add more cream to cut the sugar a bit if I need to!




Thank you for letting me know; I'm glad you liked it. icon_smile.gif

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lovenintheoven Posted 23 Jul 2010 , 2:29am
post #11 of 25
Quote:
Originally Posted by auntbeesbaking

Quote:
Originally Posted by floral1210

Auntbeesbaking...your Extra Special Buttercream recipe is totally awesome! It has a wonderful consistency, and really isn't very sweet. I add more cream to cut the sugar a bit if I need to!



Thank you for letting me know; I'm glad you liked it. icon_smile.gif



Auntbeesbaking:

This sounds wonderful! Quick couple of questions: Does the cake need to be refrigerated because of the whip cream in the buttercream? How does it hold up? I as well have a request for the same type of frosting as the poster here, but have the extra challenge of them wanting to pick up the cake the day before their party...so their request for a whipped cream frosting SCARES me, even "aiding" it with gelatin, whip cream aide, anything! Thanks for any help!

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ddaigle Posted 23 Jul 2010 , 12:46pm
post #12 of 25

Loveinthe oven...Auntbee uses whipping cream (milk) as her liquid...not whipped cream. I use the same liquid in my butter cream and it can stay out. If your client wants whipped cream frosting...that is another recipe and needs to be refrigerated. HTH.

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lovenintheoven Posted 23 Jul 2010 , 1:50pm
post #13 of 25
Quote:
Originally Posted by ddaigle

Loveinthe oven...Auntbee uses whipping cream (milk) as her liquid...not whipped cream. I use the same liquid in my butter cream and it can stay out. If your client wants whipped cream frosting...that is another recipe and needs to be refrigerated. HTH.



yes, i understand that hers is a buttercream that uses whipping cream (before it is whipped) as the liquid. And that a whipped cream frosting is another animal altogether. My problem is that I am afraid of that animal! They chose this becuase they do not like "a sweet heavy frosting...something vanillaish and light and fluffy". BUT, there are also GP, WC and RI figures that need to decorate it. Hence my fear of the whipped cream frosting. And also why I ask how this one holds. Any thoughts? Thanks!

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ddaigle Posted 23 Jul 2010 , 1:57pm
post #14 of 25

I have decorated with BetterCream (the whipped cream from Sam's) It actually makes gorgeous roses. You can pipe with it also....but.......I have never put the other things on it that you need to. I'd be skeerd! Don't know if they can get both: Whipped topping AND all that deco. I would never ever put any decoration with any kind of weight on the side of a cake iced in whipped cream. Good luck....maybe others will give some opinions. Deb

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lovenintheoven Posted 23 Jul 2010 , 2:44pm
post #15 of 25
Quote:
Originally Posted by ddaigle

I have decorated with BetterCream (the whipped cream from Sam's) It actually makes gorgeous roses. You can pipe with it also....but.......I have never put the other things on it that you need to. I'd be skeerd! Don't know if they can get both: Whipped topping AND all that deco. I would never ever put any decoration with any kind of weight on the side of a cake iced in whipped cream. Good luck....maybe others will give some opinions. Deb




Do you think Auntbeebaking's buttercream would hold well for this? It sounds like a lighter, less sweet buttercream. And no, they realistically cannot have both the decorations AND the light whipped cream frosting, can they? Thanks for your help!

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auntbeesbaking Posted 23 Jul 2010 , 2:51pm
post #16 of 25
Quote:
Originally Posted by lovenintheoven

Quote:
Originally Posted by ddaigle

I have decorated with BetterCream (the whipped cream from Sam's) It actually makes gorgeous roses. You can pipe with it also....but.......I have never put the other things on it that you need to. I'd be skeerd! Don't know if they can get both: Whipped topping AND all that deco. I would never ever put any decoration with any kind of weight on the side of a cake iced in whipped cream. Good luck....maybe others will give some opinions. Deb



Do you think Auntbeebaking's buttercream would hold well for this? It sounds like a lighter, less sweet buttercream. And no, they realistically cannot have both the decorations AND the light whipped cream frosting, can they? Thanks for your help!





I havent had any issues with decorating. If I needed it to be "stiffer" I add more powdered sugar. However, making the recipe as written with the meringue powder, it crusts nicely for paper towel imprints, does well for piping. I thin it out with a little more whipping cream or corn syrup if I need it to be extra light. If I do make it chocolate, sifting cocoa powder makes a nice consistency also.

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ddaigle Posted 23 Jul 2010 , 3:02pm
post #17 of 25

I think I'm confused. icon_rolleyes.gif I think Auntbee's buttercream recipe is a regular butter cream icing except she uses heavy whipping cream as her liquid instead of water. Her recipe, which is very similar to the Butter Cream Dream here on cc is what I use for all my cakes. It may not be as "light" as your niece wants.

Auntbee...jump in and help me please......... icon_biggrin.gif

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floral1210 Posted 23 Jul 2010 , 3:09pm
post #18 of 25

If this helps at all...I was very concerned about using Stabilized Whipped Cream for a communion cake I had to do. I wanted to add a FBCT to it, and feared the weight of it would be too much for the whipped cream frosting. The cake is shown in my gallery, and it turned out just fine. (The stained glass window is the FBCT). I was a little surprised at just how much body the whipped cream had. That being said...I can't speak for any other types of decoration, as that is the first time and only time that I have used it. Also, whipped cream frosting is a totally different taste from other icings...I would just be sure that it is what she wants, and not just a "fluffy frosting".

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indydebi Posted 23 Jul 2010 , 3:17pm
post #19 of 25

While I understand the taste difference between "sweet" and "not so sweet" icing, i've never understood why people ask that. icon_confused.gif It's icing .... it's made of sugar! icon_lol.gif

I've had people ask me for icing that's ".....not so sweet; we like the whipped cream type of icing", to which I reply:

"I dont' *DO* Kroger cakes. If you want Kroger icing, there's one 3 minutes that way." icon_rolleyes.gif

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Larkin121 Posted 23 Jul 2010 , 3:21pm
post #20 of 25

Consider trying SMBC or IMBC (same idea, different methods). Both are less sweet, more "adult." I use SMBC for all of my cakes and everyone always goes on and on about how good the icing is... not so sickeningly sweet as some powdered sugar icings can be.

When you make chocolate SMBC, it's almost like mousse!

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auntbeesbaking Posted 23 Jul 2010 , 3:39pm
post #21 of 25
Quote:
Originally Posted by ddaigle

I think I'm confused. icon_rolleyes.gif I think Auntbee's buttercream recipe is a regular butter cream icing except she uses heavy whipping cream as her liquid instead of water. Her recipe, which is very similar to the Butter Cream Dream here on cc is what I use for all my cakes. It may not be as "light" as your niece wants.

Auntbee...jump in and help me please......... icon_biggrin.gif




It looks like you use a stick more butter than I use.

I will tell you when people request the "light and fluffy stuff" I use Bettercreme from GFS. It comes in vanilla and chocolate. I haven't had any problem using RI decorations on it. I haven't used gumpaste so I can't talk about that. But, I regularly use RI flowers as decorations on the Bettercreme (from Rich's). Of course you can't imprint it with paper towels because it doesn't crust. And, if I add colors to it, it tends to air dry on me so I always add in more liquid Bettercreme and it brings it right back. And, I think I tend to overwhip it in the beginning because the soft peak fools me in thinking it isn't stiff enough to ice with. I DO like Bettercreme. I'm not a "frosting" - or "cake" person either but I do like it. (However, I AM a PIE person! icon_lol.gif )

As far as my frosting goes, I've had a number of people who say they don't like frosting love this. My highest compliment was from a grandma who pm'd me saying her 6 year-old grandson called her for the recipe! LOL! That's why I say I bake for joy. I might not be a great cake decorator but I do like to bake, especially for those who like to eat sweets! (Don't get me wrong, if I could buy the talent I see on this website regularly, I'd buy it in a heartbeat!!!)

My frosting isn't as "heavy" as "regular buttercream" and as I said, reminds me of silk. You can make it thicker though by adding more sugar. If you do, I would add more of the salt and extracts to take away the extra sweetness.

I hope this helps....I don't know what more to add. Other than, I never whip the whipping cream, I just use the liquid.

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deMuralist Posted 23 Jul 2010 , 3:45pm
post #22 of 25

http://cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-601193-bettercreme.html

This is a thread on Bettercreme, if you are really looking for a stable whipped cream type frosting I am sure the answers that you seek will be here. If not you can pm Melvira.

Good luck

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Deanna78 Posted 25 Jul 2010 , 10:25pm
post #23 of 25

AuntBee, I used your frosting and she loved it, actually EVERYONE loved it so thank you very much! It was good to work with but I did have some air in it, any suggestions what to do to avoid that next time?

Thanks!!

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auntbeesbaking Posted 26 Jul 2010 , 12:53am
post #24 of 25
Quote:
Originally Posted by Deanna78

AuntBee, I used your frosting and she loved it, actually EVERYONE loved it so thank you very much! It was good to work with but I did have some air in it, any suggestions what to do to avoid that next time?

Thanks!!




Could you possibly have overwhiped it?

I am so happy you liked it though! Thanks for letting me know! icon_smile.gif

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Deanna78 Posted 5 Aug 2010 , 12:49pm
post #25 of 25

Auntbee, how do you make this into chocolate? Do you use cocoa and how much?

Thanks!

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